One of my poems about my stroke and it's aftermath, ‘To Save Herself’, is nestled up in the latest edition of Australian Poetry Journal: APJ 9.2 – ‘DIS─’ edited by Andy Jackson and Jennifer Harrison
Cover artwork: punctuation drawn from a 9.1 poem, created by Stuart Geddes.
There are some songs: some new, some old, on the bandcamp page - if you are interested.
BBC Radio 3 and I made a thing. They are are playing that and a song of Alias Nun, (Araignee Chaine, Sha Proudfoot and myself), as well as a poem on the show.
I’m delighted to be guest at the Kavisha Mazella Farewell Concert on Saturday 30th Nov. at Theatre Royale, Castlemaine.
”FAREWELL KAVISHA
She's returning to the west
Kavisha Mazzella, the much loved and admired musician, singer, songwriter, performer and choir leader, is leaving Castlemaine to return to her original home town of Perth.
The ARIA award-winning songbird will be deeply missed. But before she heads west Kavisha will perform a special concert at the Theatre Royal - a night brimming with her original and traditional Italian songs steeped in humour, poetry,
social justice and the spiritual.
Think of it as a Royal Command Performance, where Kavisha's fans from Castlemaine and afar can come together to honour her as an artist and for her great
community spirit in bringing people together around her music.
Oft quoted as having the voice of an angel, Kavisha will be joined by musical friends,
including Jack Norton (bouzouki and chittara battente - Italian guitar) and Matthew Arnold (violin) along with MC Jan 'Yarn' Wositzky. And there will be more!
So book early for what promises to be a grand Castlemaine night to farewell one of the great artists to make this town home.”
Kavisha and I met at a Daylesford Wind Turbine Festival some years ago when we were both performing and i am thrilled to join her on the stage for her Farewell Concert. I will be reading a poem on the night.
If you want to come along follow the link below.
I was happy to have a work included in the ‘Love Collage’ - group exhibition, at Lot 19 from 1st Nov - 17th Nov.
I created the Oil Paint and Illustration as Collage work for the show, ‘To Hold an Ancient Story Told of Amour’. (71cm x51 cm)
I created this painting while thinking about self love as a form of healing, thinking about how self love benefits not only myself but everyone and every living thing around me. The more I am able to bring about love for myself, the more whole and of service I am able to be. The drawings around me are the beings, memories of experiences, seen or unseen, that assist me in my process of healing and self actualisation. Some of the drawings depict many stories and are filled with layers of meaning and food that have gone to enriching my experience of living in this lifetime, in this body. ❤️MAY LOVE HEAL❤️
I'm delighted to have two poems included in this beautiful Anthology about the night sky as seen from Regional NSW, edited by Merrill, Findlay
“When you look up at a midnight sky, what do you see—mottled stars and a full Moon trying hard to compete with the street lamps for your attention? You might be situated in a city, or its sprawling suburbs, where the ever-present urban glow tends to keep your gaze horizontal, missing out on the beckoning mysteries of the Universe.
This Skywriters anthology will change all that. Through the eyes and creativity of people who write about south-eastern inland Australia, we’ll redirect your vision upwards to a brighter Moon, the subtle presence of nearby planets, the cosmic spectacular of our Milky Way galaxy and those celestial bodies even further away.
You’ll find inspiring stories, poems and essays by a great diversity of Australians responding to what some have called the ‘Inland Astro-Trail’, which connects rural and remote communities with world-class astronomical observatories such as those at Parkes, Siding Springs and Narrabri. Some skystories are “literary”, others intensely personal, but all are guaranteed to widen your horizons—upwards!”
I am appearing at the Nati Frinj Biennale this year at Natimuk Soldiers Memorial Hall, 3.30- 4.30pm on Sunday 3rd Nov.
Ive a new instrument so i look forward to adding song among the poems.
Beautiful Folk!
I've been creating a work for this 'LOVE Collage' Group Exhibition.
This is an invitation to the show, if you wanna come gander at what has grown out of my heart and through my finger tips.
I haven't exhibited any art in Castlemaine for ages so I'm excited to be included in this show. I shall by exhibiting my new collage and oil work titled: ‘To Hold the Ancient Story Told of Before’
Opening from 5-8pm Friday 1st November .
Gallery Hours: Friday, Sat, Sun 11-5
1st-17th November at Lot 19
McShanags Road Castlemaine..
Leslie Thorton "Grandparents House Woodford, Queensland", 2010
I will be guest poet of Hazel Hall at Manning Clarke House on Thursday 22nd August, 7 for 7.30pm. 11 Tasmanian Cir. Forest, ACT
$10
I am sharing the podium with Denise Burton and Laurie MacDonald.
At the beautiful Wicken Fen, Norfolk, U.K.
Last year i was invited by Anthony Fisher at Enfield Poets, London, to submit a spoken poem to their Poetic Voices collection.
This is my poem:
I am honoured to have my poem, Whence, go to live in The Summer edition of The Poetry Review alongside such stellar poets whom i greatly admire, including Jen Hadfield and Mary Ruefle.
I can’t wait for my copy to arrive at the post office so i can walk down to collect and on the way home, sit where i wrote the poem and tell the trees and grasses and the kangaroos all about it.
Arwork by Marion Wadi
I was invited by Enfield Poets to be their June Poet of the Month. THis entails have a A1 poster of my poem displayed in the window of the Dugdale Theatre Centre in Enfield, London.
And this is a link to the previous Enfiled Poets of the Month
Black-throated Finches are endangered and their ecosystem is under threat from the proposed Adani coal mine in QLD.
Theses precious and irreplaceable creatures are our canaries in the coal mine and they re just holding on by a feather.
This is my drawing of one of these beauties, as a part of the !000finches project, to add voice to their existence..
If you would like, you can support and donate to the Wangan & Jagalingou Traditional Owners Family Council who have been at the literal coal face for the past eight years, fighting Adani over Land Use Agreement.
Below is a the link to the Wagan and Jagalingou Family Council.
I have a poem included in this free online edition of Westerly. Link to the download is in the button below.
Friday 8th March
11-2pm 2019
Women of Mount Alexander sing, tell stories and recite poetry at a highly entertaining and educative International Women's Day Open Mike with Felicity Cripps, Trudy Edgley, Meg Nightjar, Allis Hamilton, Maggie Jackson, Elizabeth Scanlon, Cate Mercer, Kavisha Mazzella and surprise guests…
A family friendly event.
All Welcome $5 suggested donation
Snacks and drinks by Friends Of Castlemaine Library
money raised will support FOCAL Women’s Prison Literacy projects.
Venue kindly supported by Mount Alexander Shire Council
PA kindly donated by Castlemaine Artists Market
Thank you to all Musicians have donated their time.
Poster drawn and created by Kavisha.
This excellent project is still touring the country.
I have a poem, White-necked (Pacific) Heron in this project, and created sound impressions of the Diamond Dove, in the project.
I am honoured to be a finalist in this prize alongside some amazing artists, judged by the brilliant John Wolsely. Here is the invitation to the show, if you are wanting to go and have a squizz.
Today my little Eel drawing made its way back home. It's clustered in here among 137 other Eel illustrations by 71 artists. Published by Guillemot Press, in conjunction with Plymouth University, U.K. to raise awareness of the plight of the magical and threatened Eel.
Link below to the Eel site:
I am a finalist in the $25,000 Adelaide Perry Drawing Prize, judged by the brilliant John Wolseley.
This is my shortlisted work, 'Nantiberry Spring, Warraweena', which I created using oil pastel and pencil on paper, en plein air in the Flinders Ranges in 2018.
The work will be shown among the other finalists from 2nd March until 29th March at the Adelaide Perry Gallery, ‘ The Croydon’, Corner Hennessey and College Streets Croydon, Sydney.
Artists Statement:
My artistry reveals itself through various mediums, from drawing, painting, music and poetry. I am driven to express my impression of the blessing of life into works that can feed the hearts and minds of the viewer, listener and reader.
I began this work on the final day of a drawing trip to the Flinders Ranges last Autumn. I often set out around my home in central Victoria, packed with a boiled egg, thermos and hat, to perch on the earth and transpose the vista about me onto the blank page. So to find myself creating within the majesty of the Flinders Ranges was a humbling and thrilling experience.
For this work I settled myself on the grey, blue, and purple pebbles of the drying creek bed, around the corner from the seeping spring, where wallaroos dig among soft gravel to lean on their elbows and drink from their freshly dug pool of water.
While I drew my impression of this awesome waterway, that reveals itself in layer upon layer of shale, I watched a family of wild goats traverse the far horizon, making their way down to the life-giving spring while above a magpie called in the still, enormous air.
Here is 'The Creel'. It's an anthology published by Guillemot Press, U.K. to raise awareness of the endangered European Eel. I am thrilled to have my work included among such fine company:
An anthology of contemporary poetry about eels, featuring Matt Barnard, Simon Barraclough, Rachael Boast, Eavan Boland, Traci Brimhall, Andy Brown, Sarah Cave, Jenna Clake, Claire Collison, Hugh Dukerley, Andy Fentham, Jerome Fletcher, Imogen Forster, Tim Gardiner, Stephen Grace, Ann Gray, Allis Hamilton, Sarah James, Fawzia Kane, Michael Longley, Jane Lovell, Rupert Loydell, Talia Marshall, Andrew McNeillie, Sam Meekings, Edwin Morgan, Paul Muldoon, Elizabeth O’Connor, Caitriona O’Reilly, Alice Oswald, Jeremy Over, Astra Papachristodoulou, Robert Peake, Rachel Plummer, Wendy Pratt, Susan Richardson, Robin Robertson, Elisabeth Sennitt Clough, Ben Smith, Danica Soich, Nic Stringer, Sneha Subramanian Kanta, M. Stone, Alex Toms, Gareth Writer-Davies, Marc Woodward, Tamar Yoseloff.
This is a very limited edition. Only 50 copies are available individually, printed on Mohawk Superfine with Fedrigoni end papers, with cover art by John Kilburn.
Here's to the eels and their ecosystems!
